Worsheets about bullying

If you want to see the worksheets about bullying we did in class again, click here!

School books for all subjects used in the Greek public primary schools can be found in the following link:


http://www.pi-schools.gr/books/dimotiko/

Telling the time!

Try it out:

What's the time - drag and drop

Class worsheets about the UK

Here you can find the worksheets we used in the classroom about the United Kingdom.

A quiz about the UK

Interactive practice numbers 1-20

Try it out:

Numbers 1-20

All about Shakespeare

   

Short Biography οf William Shakespeare

        William Shakespeare was born in Stratford-upon-Avon, in England in 1564. While his exact birth date is unknown, it is most often celebrated on April 23, the feast of St. George. He was the third of seven children born to John and Mary Arden Shakespeare. 

                                         Shakespeare's house in Stratford-upon-Avon

    Shakespeare's father was a tanner and glove maker. He was also a fairly prominent political figure, being an alderman of Stratford for years, and serving a term as "high bailiff" (mayor). He died in 1601, leaving little land to William. Not much is known of Mary Shakespeare, except that she had a wealthier family than John.

     William Shakespeare attended a very good grammar school in Stratford-upon- Avon, though the

time period during which he attended school is not known. His instructors were all Oxford graduates, and his studies were primarily in Latin. Little else is known of his boyhood.

    In 1582 at 18 years of age, Shakespeare married Anne Hathaway, a lady seven or eight years older than he from Shottery, a village a mile from Stratford. Their first daughter, Susanna, was born in 1583, followed by twins in 1585, Hamnet and Judith. By 1592, Shakespeare was an established playwright in London.  The plague kept the theaters closed most of the time, and it was during this time that Shakespeare wrote his earliest sonnets and poems.

    Shakespeare did most of his theater work in a district northeast of London, in two theaters owned by James Burbage, called the Theatre and the Curtain. In 1598, Burbage moved to Bankside and built the famous Globe Theatre, in which Shakespeare owned stock. Around this time, Shakespeare applied for and got a coat of arms, with the motto: Non sanz droict (not without right). This gave him the standing of a gentleman, something that was not generally associated with actors, who were considered to be in the same class with vagrants and criminals. 


You can take  a virtual tour of the Globe theatre here.

The Globe Theatre in London

    In 1603, Shakespeare's theatrical company was taken under the patronage of King James I, and

became known as the King's Company. In 1608, the company acquired the Blackfriars Theatre.  Shakespeare soon joined the group of the now famous writers who gathered at Mermaid Tavern, located on Bread Street in Cheapside. Among others, some of the writers who frequented the Tavern were Sir Walter Raleigh (the founder), and Ben Jonson.

     Shakespeare retired from theatre in 1610 and returned to Stratford.  In 1613 the Globe Theatre burned down, but Shakespeare remained quite wealthy and contributed to the building of the new Globe Theatre . Shakespeare died on April 23, 1616 and was buried in the chancel of the Church of the Holy Trinity in Stratford. A monument to Shakespeare was set up on the north wall of the chancel, with a bust of Shakespeare. The bust and the engraving by Droeshout that prefixed the First Folio are the only renderings of Shakespeare that are considered to be accurate.  

Shakespeare's funerary monument in Stratford

ΒΙΟΓΡΑΦΙΑ ΟΥΙΛΛΙΑΜ ΣΑΙΞΠΗΡ

Ο Ουίλλιαμ Σαίξπηρ (αγγλικά: William Shakespeare, Απρίλιος 1564 - 23 Απριλίου 1616) ήταν ένας από τους σπουδαιότερους ποιητές και θεατρικούς συγγραφείς.

Θεωρείται μια από τις κορυφαίες μορφές της παγκόσμιας λογοτεχνίας. Τα έργα του έχουν μεταφραστεί στις περισσότερες γλώσσες του κόσμου, ενώ τα θεατρικά του παίζονται έως σήμερα, διατηρώντας αμείωτο το ενδιαφέρον. Ο Σαίξπηρ κατάφερε να χειριστεί με απόλυτη δεξιοτεχνία τόσο την κωμωδία όσο και το δράμα και την τραγωδία. Τα έργα του διαπνέονται από μία βαθειά κατανόηση της ανθρώπινης φύσης και παραμένουν επίκαιρα.

Η επίδραση του, ειδικότερα στην αγγλική λογοτεχνία, θεωρείται τεράστια.

Ο Σαίξπηρ γεννήθηκε στην πόλη Stratford-upon-Avon (ή απλά Stratford) τον Απρίλιο του 1564. Πατέρας του ήταν ο John Shakespeare, πετυχημένος έμπορος και μητέρα του η Mary Arden, κόρη εύπορης οικογένειας. Ο πατέρας του Σαίξπηρ, συμμετείχε για ένα διάστημα στις δημόσιες υποθέσεις, ασκώντας καθήκοντα δημοτικού συμβούλου περίπου στα 1560, θέση που αργότερα έχασε καθώς κατηγορήθηκε για παράνομο εμπόριο. Έχει επικρατήσει να θεωρείται ως ημερομηνία γέννησης του Σαίξπηρ η 23η Απριλίου. Η ακριβής όμως ημερομηνία παραμένει έως σήμερα άγνωστη. Η μόνη γνωστή πληροφορία που υπάρχει σχετικά, είναι πως η βάφτισή του έγινε στις 26 Απριλίου όπως καταγράφεται στα μητρώα εκκλησίας του Στράτφορντ. Επιπλέον είναι γνωστό πως την εποχή εκείνη, η τελετή της βάφτισης γινόταν λίγες μόνο ημέρες μετά τη γέννηση.

Για την παιδική ηλικία του Σαίξπηρ ελάχιστα είναι γνωστά. Θεωρείται πιθανό πως έλαβε την εκπαίδευσή του στο σχολείο του Στράτφορντ, όπου πρέπει να ήρθε σε επαφή με την κλασική λογοτεχνία και τα λατινικά. Έχοντας μελετηρό χαρακτήρα, ο Σαίξπηρ διάβαζε πολύ στα νεανικά του χρόνια, αν και δεν έγραφε πολύ. Κανένα στοιχείο δεν μπορεί να πιστοποιήσει κατά πόσον η εκπαίδευσή του συνεχίστηκε αργότερα.

Στις 28 Νοεμβρίου του 1582 ο Σαίξπηρ παντρεύτηκε την Anne Hathaway, οκτώ χρόνια μεγαλύτερή του και ήδη τριών μηνών έγκυο όταν παντρεύτηκαν. Ο γάμος τους έγινε στο ναό Grafton κοντά στην πόλη του Statford. Μαζί απέκτησαν τρία παιδιά. Στις 26 Μαΐου του 1583 βαπτίστηκε η κόρη τους Susanna ενώ στις 2 Φεβρουαρίου του 1585 καταγράφεται η βάπτιση των δύο δίδυμων παιδιών τους, του Χάμνετ και της Ιουδήθ.

Ο Σαίξπηρ κατά καιρούς υπέφερε πολύ από φτώχεια. Μολοταύτα είχε τις φιλοδοξίες του και ήλπιζε. Το 1587 πήγε στο Λονδίνο για να προσπαθήσει να καλυτερέψει την οικονομική του κατάσταση. Διαφορετικές εκτιμήσεις κάνουν λόγο για φυγή του από το Statford με την κατηγορία κλοπής ή για συνεχείς μετακινήσεις του στη χώρα με την ιδιότητα του δασκάλου.

Στο Λονδίνο, ο Σαίξπηρ έδειξε ενδιαφέρον για το θέατρο. Επειδή δεν είχε τα μέσα να πληρώνει για τα εισιτήρια, προσπαθούσε να κερδίζει χρήματα κρατώντας τα άλογα των θεατών του θεάτρου. Αργότερα έγινε ηθοποιός, και αφού απέκτησε αρκετή πείρα, άρχισε να βοηθά θεατρικούς συγγραφείς στο γράψιμο των χειρογράφων. Με το ανέβασμα του πρώτου του έργου "Αγάπης Αγώνας Άγονος", περί τα 1590, άρχισε τη σταδιοδρομία του.

Το 1594 ο Σαίξπηρ εμφανίζεται να συμμετέχει στη θεατρική ομάδα Lord Chamberlain's Men, η οποία χρηματοδοτείται από τον λόρδο Chamberlain. Ο θίασος αυτός θεωρείται πως είχε σημαντική αναγνώριση καθώς το 1603 ο νέος μονάρχης, James I, συνέχισε να τον συντηρεί οικονομικά αφού μετονομάστηκε σε King's Men. Ο Σαίξπηρ συμμετείχε ως ηθοποιός και θεατρικός συγγραφέας. Αρκετά νομικά έγγραφα της εποχής που διασώζονται πιστοποιούν πως στη διάρκεια αυτής της περιόδου ο Σαίξπηρ κέρδισε αρκετά χρήματα. Αναφέρονται χαρακτηριστικά η απόκτηση του σπιτιού του (New Place) στο Στράτφορντ, το 1597, το οποίο ήταν το δεύτερο μεγαλύτερο σπίτι στην περιοχή καθώς και η αγορά έκτασης στο Blackfriars του Λονδίνου. Παράλληλα φέρεται ως συνιδιοκτήτης του θεάτρου Globe στο Λονδίνο. Την ίδια περίοδο θεωρείται πως είναι γραμμένα μερικά από τα πιο γνωστά του έργα, μεταξύ των οποίων οι τραγωδίες Αντώνιος και Κλεοπάτρα, Ιούλιος Καίσαρ, Άμλετ, Βασιλιάς Ληρ, Μακβεθ και Οθέλλος.

Τα πρώτα σονέτα του Σαίξπηρ δημοσιεύτηκαν το 1609, αν και γράφτηκαν λίγα χρόνια νωρίτερα και αποτελούσαν ως επί το πλείστον ερωτικά ποιήματα. Τα τελευταία οκτώ χρόνια της ζωής του καταγράφονται μόλις τέσσερα θεατρικά του έργα εκ των οποίων το τελευταίο είναι ο Ερρίκος ο Η' , του 1613. Μετά το 1613, ο Σαίξπηρ διέκοψε τη συγγραφή και αποσύρθηκε σε ένα ωραίο καινούργιο σπίτι του Stratford. Όμως πρόλαβε να αφήσει πίσω του ένα εντυπωσιακό αριθμό έργων. Πέθανε στις 23 Απριλίου του 1616 και ο τάφος του βρίσκεται στο ιερό της εκκλησίας της Αγίας Τριάδας του Statford. Ο ενταφιασμός του στο ιερό ήταν μια ιδιαίτερη τιμή που του έγινε όμως όχι λόγω της συγγραφικής του ιδιότητας, αλλά διότι είχε εξαγοράσει ένα μερίδιο της εκκλησίας έναντι 440 λιρών, ποσού σημαντικό για την εποχή. Στον τάφο του Σαίξπηρ τοποθετήθηκε έπειτα από δική του επιθυμία η παρακάτω επιγραφή:

Good friend, for Jesus' sake forbear,

To dig the dust enclosed here

Blest be the man that spares these stones,

But cursed be he that moves my bones.

και σε ελεύθερη μετάφραση:

Καλέ φίλε, στο όνομα του Θεού συγκρατήσου,

Στο να σκάψεις τη σκόνη που εσωκλείεται εδώ.

Ευλογημένος όποιος ήσυχες αφήσει αυτές τις πέτρες,

Καταραμένος όμως όποιος ανακινήσει τα κόκκαλα μου.

Σχετικά με την επιγραφή αυτή, καλλιεργήθηκε ένας μύθος σύμφωνα με τον οποίο, αδημοσίευτα έργα του Σαίξπηρ πιθανόν να βρίσκονται εντός του τάφου. Μέχρι σήμερα δεν έχει αποπειραθεί να διαπιστωθεί η αλήθεια αυτής της υπόθεσης.

Shakespeare's grave

Οne of Shakespeare's most famous commedies is 'A midsummer night's dream' (Όνειρο καλοκαιρινής νυκτός). You can watch it in two parts:

Part 1

Part 2

Time to play! TABOO

Do you like card games? Download those taboo cards, print them, cut them out and enjoy!

Past Simple

Form of Simple Past

	Positive	Negative	Question
	I spoke.	I did not speak.	Did I speak?

For irregular verbs, use the past form (see list of irregular verbs, 2nd column). For regular verbs, just add “ed”.

 

Exceptions in Spelling when Adding ‘ed’

Exceptions in spelling when adding ed	Example
after a final e only add d	love – loved
final consonant after a short, stressed vowel or l as final consonant after a vowel is doubled	admit – admitted travel – travelled
final y after a consonant becomes i	hurry – hurried

 

Use of Simple Past

• action in the past taking place once, never or several times
  Example: He visited his parents every weekend.
• actions in the past taking place one after the other
  Example: He came in, took off his coat and sat down.
• action in the past taking place in the middle of another action
  Example: When I was having breakfast, the phone suddenly rang.
• if sentences type II (If I talked, …)
  Example: If I had a lot of money, I would share it with you.

 

Key Words of Simple Past 

yesterday, 2 minutes ago, in 1990, the other day, last Friday, in September etc 

 

Let's practice now!

Exercise 1(test)

A STORY: Goldilocks and the three bears Part 1 Part 2 Part 3


Source:  http://www.ego4u.com

If you're happy and you know it...

Don't put your trousers on your head!

Vocabulary for clothes through a song! Sing along...

English Kids Songs

Dream English Kids Songs, free mp3 song downloads,flashcards and lesson ideas,let's sing!

Time for a song!

These are the lyrics of a song we did in class with grade c at highschool while trying to revise the past simple (and the past participle) of verbs, together with the video of the song. I think, for some strange reason, boys enjoyed it more than girls.

  

Alexander The Great

Artist(Band): Iron Maiden

"My son ask for thyself another

Kingdom, for that which I leave

is too small for thee"

(King Philip of Macedonia - 339 B.C.)

Near to the east

In a part of ancient Greece

In an ancient land called Macedonia

Was born a son

To Philip of Macedon

The legend his name was Alexander

At the age of nineteen

He became the Macedon King

And he swore to free all of Asia Minor

By the Aegean Sea

In 334 B.C.

He utterly beat the armies of Persia

Alexander the Great

His name struck fear into hearts of men

Alexander the Great

Became a legend amongst mortal men

King Darius the third

Defeated fled Persia

The Scythians fell by the river Jaxartes

Then Egypt fell to the Macedon King as well

And he founded the city called Alexandria

By the Tigris river

He met King Darius again

And crushed him again in the battle of Arbela

Entering Babylon

And Susa, treasures he found

Took Persepolis the capital of Persia

Alexander the Great

His name struck fear into hearts of men

Alexander the Great

Became a God amongst mortal men

A Phrygian King had bound a chariot yoke

And Alexander cut the Gordian knot

And legend said that who untied the knot

He would become the master of Asia

Hellenism he spread far and wide

The Macedonian learned mind

Their culture was a Western way of life

He paved the way for Christianity

Marching on, marching on

The battle weary marching side by side

Alexander's army line by line

They wouldn't follow him to India

Tired of the combat, pain and the glory

Alexander the Great

His name struck fear into hearts of men

Alexander the Great

He died of fever in Babylon

TASK: Find all the verbs in the past simple and then write the three columns of the verb.

Lefteris Pantazis vs Dan Wilson ...

Just another proof that pronunciation is of vital importance... (or "An easy way to destroy a beautiful song")

 or

Are you 'breathless' now after listening ??? Well, you should be by now...

Thor

---

Thor was the god of thunder and of the sky in Norse* and early Germanic mythology. Though Odin* held a higher rank, Thor seems to have been the best loved and most worshiped of the Norse deities. He belonged to the common people, while Odin appealed to the learned and noble classes. A patron of farmers, Thor was associated with weather and crops. Although he could be fearsome, many myths portray him in a comic and affectionate way.

Origins and Qualities. Thor appears throughout Norse mythology as a huge, strongly built, red-bearded fellow with a huge appetite. He grew out of Donar or Thunor, an ancient god of sky and thunder. Some myths say that Thor was the son of Odin and Fjorgyn, the earth goddess. His wife was the beautiful goddess Sif, who seldom appears in myths and remains a somewhat mysterious figure.
Generally good-natured, Thor had a hot temper, and his anger was dreadful to behold. He was a fierce enemy of the frost giants, the foes of the Norse gods. When people heard thunder and saw lightning in the sky, they knew that Thor was fighting these evil giants.
The thunder god's chief weapon was his mighty hammer Mjollnir, or Crusher, which the dwarfs had forged for him. When he threw Mjollnir, it returned magically to his hand like a boomerang. Among Mjollnir's other powers was the gift of restoring life to the dead. The connection of Thor's hammer with life and fertility gave rise to the old Norse customs of placing a hammer in a bride's lap at her wedding and of raising it over a newborn child.

deity god or goddess
patron special guardian, protector, or supporter

Thor's treasures also included a magical belt that doubled his strength whenever he wore it and a pair of goats, Tanngniost and Tanngrisni (both "Toothgnashers"), that pulled his chariot across the sky. Whenever he was overcome with hunger, Thor would devour his goats, only to return them to life with Mjollnir.

Thor, the Norse god of thunder and the sky, appears in the center of this tapestry holding his mighty hammer.

Myths About Thor. According to one well-known myth about Thor, Thrym, king of the giants, came into possession of Mjollnir and declared that he would give it back to Thor only if the beautiful goddess Freyja agreed to marry him. She angrily refused, and the trickster god Loki came up with a clever plan to recover Mjollnir. Using women's clothing and a bridal veil to disguise Thor as Freyja, Loki escorted "Freyja" to Jotunheim, the home of the giants. Thrym greeted his bride, though he was surprised at her appetite at the wedding feast. "Freyja" consumed an entire ox, three barrels of wine, and much more. Loki explained that she had been unable to eat for a week because of her excitement at marrying Thrym. The giant accepted this explanation, and the wedding proceeded. When the time came for a hammer to be placed in the bride's lap according to custom, Thor grabbed Mjollnir and threw off his disguise. Then he used the hammer to smash the giants and their hall.
During another visit to Jotunheim, Thor and Loki met Skrymir, an especially large giant. He was so big that when they wandered into one of his gloves, they thought they were in a mansion and slept in one of the fingers. In the morning they found Skrymir sleeping, and Thor tried to crush the giant's head with Mjollnir. Skrymir simply brushed away the blow as though it were no more than a falling leaf.
The gods traveled on to Utgard, a city of giants, where the giants challenged Thor to drain their drinking cup and lift their cat from the floor. He could not do either—the cup was connected to the sea, and the cat was really Jormungand, the serpent that encircles the world. Although Thor failed the tests, he came close to draining the ocean and removing the world serpent.

trickster mischievous figure appearing in various forms in the folktales and mythology of many different peoples

Several early Norse sources recount the myth of Thor's encounter with the giant Hymir. Thor disguised himself as a young man and went fishing with Hymir, first killing the giant's largest ox to use for bait. Thor then rowed their boat far out of sight of land and cast his hook. Something bit at the ox, and Thor drew up his line to discover that he had hooked Jormungand, the giant serpent. Placing his feet on the ocean floor, Thor pulled and pulled on the line, while the serpent spit out poison. Just as Thor was about to strike Jormungand with his hammer, Hymir cut the line and the serpent sank back down to the depths. Many myths say, however, that Thor and Jormungand remained bitter enemies, fated to fight again on the day called Ragnarok, the end of the world, when they will kill one another.




The metal band, Manowar have written and performed many songs based on both Greek and Norse mytrhology. Here ia a song for Thor, the god of lightning and the lyrics to go with it.

Thor Lyrics
Artist(Band):Manowar

Black clouds on the horizon
Great thunder and burning rain
His chariot pounding, I heard the heavens scream his name

I watched as he shouted
To the giants who died that day
He held up his hammer high and called to Odin for a sign

Thor the mighty, Thor the brave
Crush the infidels in your way
By your hammer let none be saved
Live to die on the final day
Gods, monsters and men
We'll die together in the end

God of thunder, God of rain
Earth shaker who feels no pain
The powerhead of the universe
Now send your never ending curse

I watched as he shouted
To the giants who died that day
He held up his hammer high and called to Odin for a sign

Thor the mighty, Thor the brave
Crush the infidels in your way
By your hammer let none be saved
Live to die on that final day
Gods, monsters and men
We'll die together in the end

Swing your hammer to crack the sky
Lift your cape so that you might fly
Back to Odin and the gods on high
And leave the mortal world

Thor the mighty, Thor the brave
Crush the infidels in your way
By your hammer let none be saved
Live to die on that final day
Gods, monsters and men
We'll die together in the end
Odin


Source: http://www.greekmyths-greekmythology.com

The 7 Wonders of the Ancient World vs the 7 Wonders of the Modern world

The seven wonders are the architectural and artistic monuments considered as perfect by the Greeks and the Romans.

 

Six of the seven wonders of the ancient world were described by Philon of Byzance, a II century before Jesus Christ ingeneer, in a manuscript entitled "Péri tôn hépta théamatôn" (About the seven wonders of the world). This manuscript including six layers only described six constructions. The seventh, the mosoleum of Halicarnassus, is only described in the introduction of the manuscript because the last layer disappeared.

However, the final list, also called canonical list, describing the seven wonders of the ancient world has been adopted after the reign of Alexandre the Great according to fourteen lists from differents authors. The selected monuments have to meet standard of beauty, size and technical prowess.

The canonical list refers to the seven following wonders : 

• The Great Pyramid of Giza
• The Hanging Gardens of Babylon
• The Statue of Zeus at Olympia
• The Temple of Artemis at Ephesus
• The Mausoleum at Halicarnassus
• The Colossus of Rhodes
• The Lighthouse of Alexandria

These monuments are located in Greece, northen Africa and minor Asia. Their date of construction varies from 2800 BC for the Pyramid of Giza to 280 BC for the Lighthouse of Alexandria.

Nowadays, the Pyramid of Giza is the only wonder who still exists. Excavations proved the existence of the other wonders, except of the Hanging Gardens of Babylon. Watch the video!

The New 7 Wonders of the World were announced during the Official Declaration ceremony in Lisbon, Portugal on Saturday, July 7, 2007 - 07.07.07:

• The Great Wall of China

• Petra, Jordan

• Christ the Redeemer, Brazil

• Machu Picchu, Peru

• The Pyramid at Chichén Itzá, Mexico

• The Roman Colosseum, Italy

• The Taj Mahal, India

-------

The nominees:

• The Acropolis of Athens, Greece

• Alhambra, Spain

• Angkor Wat, Cambodia

• The Pyramid at Chichén Itzá, Mexico

• Christ the Redeemer, Brazil

• The Roman Colosseum, Italy

• Statues of Easter Island, Chile

• The Eiffel Tower, France

• The Great Wall of China

• The Hagia Sophia, Turkey

• Kiyomizu Temple, Japan

• The Kremlin and Red Square, Russia

• Machu Picchu, Peru

• Neuschwanstein Castle, Germany

• Petra, Jordan

• The Pyramids of Giza, Egypt (Honorary candidate)

• The Statue of Liberty, United States

• Stonehenge, United Kingdom

• Sydney Opera House, Australia

• The Taj Mahal, India

• Timbuktu, Mali

You can check out this video to 'visualize'!

(Source: http://www.seven-wonders-world.com/)

Perseus and Medusa

The myth of Perseus and Medusa

The myth of Perseus and Medusa is one of the best thriller-like tales in Greek Mythology.

With a promising plot that gets more complicated as the story progresses, this myth has a typical Hollywood-like scenario with the main character not being born yet at the moment when his destiny was determined.

Here, we will present just a short version of the myth of Perseus and Medusa – until the moment when Perseus beheaded Medusa.

Perseus and the Oracle

Acrisius, the king of Argos, was told by the oracle of Delphi that his own grandson would kill him one day. This grandson would be the child of his daughter Danae. Scared of the upcoming future and his destiny, King Acrisius decided to deprive his daughter of any possible intercourse, mating and child bearing, so he built a room beneath the earth and imprisoned Danae there.

However, as the legend says, Zeus came to her in the form of golden rain, pierced through the walls of chamber, and Danae’s body. Hence, Perseus was born. Hearing the news but not believing that Zeus was the father of the newborn, Acrisius let his daughter and grandchild out to the open sea on an ark. They eventually came to the shores of Serifos island, where they were saved and adopted by a local couple, the man being the brother of the king of the island, Polydectes.

When Perseus grew up to a handsome and strong young man, one more time he found himself in the way of one king, this time King Polydectes, who wanted Danae to become his wife. Knowing that he wouldn’t have the woman for himself as long as Perseus was there to protect her, the king made a plan to send Perseus not only far away but also to a dangerous mission. Polydectes told Perseus to bring him the head of the gorgon Medusa.

Perseus and Medusa

Medusa was one of three sisters, the gorgons, but she was the only mortal one. Some versions say all three were born as monsters, but the predominant myths had them as gorgeous maidens. Medusa was so beautiful that Poseidon was crazy about her, but she didn’t care about him; Poseidon turned her and her sisters into monsters with live snakes covering their heads. Medusa kept her beautiful face but everything else was so monstrous. And whoever dared to look into her face ended up being turned into stone.

Perseus thus had a hard task. He asked Athena and Hermes for help and two of them, together with the nymphs, provided winged sandals to fly him to the end of the world where gorgons lived, a cap that made him invisible, a sword and a mirrored shield. The latter was the most important tool Perseus had, since it allowed him to see a reflection of Medusa’s face and to avoid being turned into stone.

When he cut Medusa’s head off, from the drops of her blood suddenly appeared two offspring: Pegasus, a winged horse, and Chrysaor, a giant or a winged boar. It’s believed that those two were Medusa’s children with Poseidon.

In any case, once he accomplished his task Perseus flew back and escaped Medusa’s sisters who tried to reach him. Later, Perseus used Medusa’s head as a weapon in many occasions until he gave the head to Athena to place it on her shield.

The myth of Perseus and Medusa was one the most powerful inspiration for many artists in the ancient times, but it hasn’t lost its artistic significance to the present day either. Paintings and sculptures of the moment of beheading or Medusa’s portrait itself are famous all over the world. One of the most known art work is the Medusa shield by Caravaggio, painted at the end of the 16th century. It is exposed in the Uffizi museum in Florence. Close by the museum, in the main plaza of Firenze (Florence) there is a sculpture of Perseus.

You can find an animated version of the myth here.

Source: http://www.greekmyths-greekmythology.com

The Present Perfect Continuous(or Progressive)

The present perfect continuous expresses an action that recently stopped or is still going on. It puts emphasis on the duration or course of the action.

 

Form of Present Perfect Continuous

	Positive	Negative	Question
I / you / we / they	I have been speaking.	I have not been speaking.	Have I been speaking?
he / she / it	He has been speaking.	He has not been speaking.	Has he been speaking?

 

Exceptions in Spelling

Exceptions in spelling when adding -ing	Example
final e is dropped (but: ee is not changed)	come – coming       (but: agree – agreeing)
after a short, stressed vowel, the final consonant is doubled	sit – sitting
l as final consonant after a vowel is doubled (in British English)	travel – travelling
final ie becomes y	lie – lying

 

Use of Present Perfect Continuous

• puts emphasis on the duration or course of an action (not the result)
  Example: She has been writing for two hours.
• action that recently stopped or is still going on
  Example: I have been living here since 2001.
• finished action that influenced the present
  Example: I have been working all afternoon.
  
  

   

  As with all continuous tenses remember: 

  Non-Continuous Verbs/ Mixed Verbs

  It is important to remember that Non-Continuous Verbs cannot be used in any continuous tenses. Also, certain non-continuous meanings for Mixed Verbs cannot be used in continuous tenses. Instead of using Present Perfect Continuous with these verbs, you must use Present Perfect.
  

  Examples:
  

  • Sam has been having his car for two years. Not Correct
  • Sam has had his car for two years. Correct

 

Key Words of Present Perfect Continuous

• all day, for 4 years, since 1993, How long,.......?, the whole week
 

 

Time for practice! 

Exercise 1 (test)

Exercise 2

Exercise 3 (present perfect simple vs present perfect continuous)

Source: http://www.ego4u.com/en

 

 

School and creativity

Creativity expert Sir Ken Robinson challenges the way we're educating our children. He champions a radical rethink of our school systems, to cultivate creativity and acknowledge multiple types of intelligence.

 Let's hope that his ideas will someday be heard by the designers of the greek educational system. Especially the idea of 'human ecology' and how the 'system' only prepares students for a certain purpose.

Do not worry, the video presentation has got greek subtitles so everyone can watch.

Practice tense formation!

You can find a list of exercises to practice the formation of tenses here. You can choose level in each case.